The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-04-10
THE NUDE IN ART.
Olive logan Discusses the Question Which
Agitates Fastidious Capital Ladies.
Special to the Indianapolis Jourua,

special to the Indianapolis Journal
WASHINGTON, April 9-The war against the
nude in art has again begun to rage in Washing
ton. The American matron objects to Turkish
bath drareres on prepossessing pictures of
beautiful women. RS exhibited in shop windows.
The controversy is an old one, and is sure of
revival every now and again. Last year an
animated dispute was aroused in London by the
published statement of no less an artist than
ce rtain prominent Royal Academician, who
avowed that nude models were deprayinc and
unnecessary. The humara ssuros le maintained,
could be painted from a wooden dummy, and by
this means studio morality woa.d be vastly i'm
proved. Naturally there followed a chorus of
shreks, tutti of insulted ude sitters protesting
that Lucretia herself was not moro ehaste than
they; of eublimely virtuous painters whose
feeling for color" and whose technique mag.
n'hcient.y triumphs over all such petty sensa-
tlons as are usually inherent in man born of
woman; and OF frsky art patrons who never
buy pictures of children going to church or OF
mother getting tea. The battle of words ended
where 1t began and the whole situation is in
statu quo. 1t is matter which never can be
settled, for the simple reason that human opin-
IONS are as various as human noses Religious
procilvlties do not cause to be taken among all
artlsts the view OF the anti-nu6ers. For ex-
ample, DIR. Watts, whose modes of thought aud
no are pious and grave IN the extreme, Joined
the controversy long enough to say that the
nude model was indispensable in all figure paint
ing. obviously SO to a painter of nude figures
ike himself. Last year at the Grosvenor
Gallery Watts had two nudlties; one a
woman, naked to the waist. with long streaming
golden hair. and helmet on her head an early
British Amazon, | think; the other. pale faced
haggard-eyed bov, full-length, utterly naked
being Grapped half mn a asto oto byy
bttery resolute scowling faced. heavily draped
angel; the angel of life in whose physical pains
and mental anguish the suffering youth is
ceiving his sad initiation. To paint these two
Il awonderful pictures with jointed dolls models
would, of course, have been impossible Whistler
gave a larky note of sneerins protest against
noticing the meddlng of Pecksnifian critics
of the precious art of painting: and al
though I not acquainted with any
mute figure from Whisiler's palette, who
| can look upon his marvellous portraits and be
unaware Of the vital anatomy which lives be-
meath the clothing, hiding here. discovering
there. the unmistakable contours of the form
divine? That man with almost woman's hips
underneath his dress-suit trousers, that woman
! with almost mans square shoulders rising out
| of her low lace bodice, are types that only an
artist would dare reproduce who had found
| them in nature. not in the manikins OF the first
| oil and color shop: just as there is often
! wild witchery of shape among the clouds. and
| loud peal of effulgence IN their hymn of color,
| which cause an observer to remark 'If
| painter had put those beauties upon canvas we
| should say 1T is not true"
Now, here let it again be stated, for the
everlasting verify which it is. that the true IL al
ways beautiful and the beautiful is always true.
| The beautiful and the true should be our guides
| in every path in lfe not in that road only which
| leads to the temple of art, but they should ever
be accompaned by their farest sister the good
| With this trinity, the good the beautiful and
the true we are safe on every SOIL let whatever
! pagan ruler be its king. We discard the profit
! gate taste in art which led the courtezan Mana
| to order marble statuette of herself in puris,
| standing on her head; but Wattss nude fainting
boy is worthy shrine in every heart which knows
| what life is, and has suffered, as all who are
born and die must suffer. To criticse its nudity
| is TO insult that model of divinity In which man
the image of his Maker. was sublimely and mys.
teriously formed. OLIVE LOGAN.